SB1435: What Illinois Hospitals Need to Know
Workplace violence in healthcare is no secret to those on the inside. Nurses, techs, transport staff, and frontline administrators know just how often tense situations escalate and how vulnerable hospital environments can be. But to those outside the industry, the scale of the problem is often surprising. It’s an issue that rarely makes headlines, despite being one of the most persistent threats facing healthcare workers today.
Illinois Senate Bill 1435 (SB1435) was introduced to address that risk head-on. If passed, it would require every hospital in the state to provide all employees with a wearable panic button attached to their staff ID badge, ensuring they can discreetly call for help the moment a situation turns unsafe.
As of July 2025, SB1435 has not yet been signed into law. It remains under review in the Illinois Senate Assignments Committee. No votes have been taken, and the bill’s proposed effective date, July 1, 2025, has come and gone without action. Still, with political momentum building and similar measures being discussed in other states, hospitals across Illinois are taking notice.
Whether the bill passes this year or next, the message is clear: personal safety measures like panic buttons are no longer a fringe idea. They are quickly becoming the new standard for staff protection, and hospitals that act now will be ahead of the curve.
What SB1435 Proposes
SB1435 is a simple, targeted piece of legislation. It would amend both the Hospital Licensing Act and the University of Illinois Hospital Act to require that every hospital employee be issued a panic button physically attached to their staff identification badge.
That’s it. No exceptions by role, department, or job title. If someone works in the hospital, they would be covered, whether they’re a nurse on a psych floor or part of the custodial team. The goal is to ensure rapid response capabilities anywhere inside or outside the hospital facility, especially in areas where staff often feel the most isolated.
The bill does not go into specifics about the technology platform, alert routing, or training requirements, but the expectation is clear: hospitals must take proactive responsibility for making sure staff can signal for help quickly and effectively.
Why Hospitals Are Preparing Anyway
The fact that SB1435 hasn’t passed yet hasn’t stopped forward-thinking hospitals from moving. There are two reasons for that.
First, the risk is real. Healthcare workers remain five times more likely to experience workplace violence than employees in other industries. These aren’t just isolated events in high-intensity environments. They happen in waiting rooms, hallways, parking garages, and recovery areas. Staff need tools that allow them to request help quickly, quietly, and without escalating a situation.
Second, implementation takes time. Evaluating vendors, vetting the right technology, securing budget, rolling out devices, training staff, and testing the system cannot be done overnight. Waiting for a mandate can leave hospitals scrambling to catch up, which often results in rushed decisions and uneven deployment. Hospitals that act now stay in control and send a strong message that staff safety matters here.
How Pinpoint Helps Hospitals Get Ahead
Pinpoint is not just compliant with SB1435. It is built for hospitals that expect more. Our system was designed from the ground up for healthcare environments, combining real-time emergency response with privacy, precision, and reliability at scale.
Unlike GPS- or Wi-Fi-based solutions, Pinpoint does not track staff location throughout the day. It only activates when needed, pinpointing the exact location of the incident at the moment a button is pressed. No constant monitoring, no surveillance, just immediate and accurate response when it matters most.
Coverage extends throughout the facility, and even into outdoor areas where many systems fail to reach.
Pinpoint’s panic button is integrated into the employee’s existing badge clip or lanyard system, ensuring 24/7 accessibility without requiring an additional
If you are preparing for SB1435 or simply want to provide your team with the tools they deserve, Pinpoint delivers a level of protection that is built to last.
Final Thoughts
SB1435 has not passed yet, but it might. And whether it moves forward this fall, next session, or as part of a broader workplace safety initiative, it reflects the direction hospital safety is heading.
Healthcare workers deserve more than reactive policies. They deserve tools that make them feel safe in the moment, not just paperwork after an incident. Panic buttons are not the only solution, but they are a critical one. And they are no longer optional.
Hospitals that act now will not only be ready to comply when laws change, they will already be protecting their people in the meantime.
Interested in learning more about how Pinpoint can help your hospital prepare for SB1435 and future safety mandates?
Schedule a demo or speak to our team today.